NEW ZEALANDers heading to the US and their USC spouses - POST HERE!

[Michelle Kauffman 0]

That's such wonderful news Kim, i'm sure there'll be no problems at the interview and all you'll have to worry about is the wedding plans

[kelzm 0]

Great news Kim

I'm on my last week of work now, flying out Monday evening to San Francisco. I'm spending this week sorting and re-sorting all my belongings and trying to get myself down to three suitcases only! The nerves are starting to kick in when I think about the big trip, I'm very excited but the prospect of leaving family is a bit daunting. I'm worried about my son who will be staying in NZ to finish High School, I'm sure that he'll be fine but I know the next few months are going to be a bit traumatic for us both.

[cdneh 3,112]

What excellent news Kim Such a fast turn around! I am hoping we all have such a time frame...when the time comes! Only two weeks left to go !!!

[kiwiana 2]

bobsagetti: its kinda ironic that the california service centre is the slowest out of the two centres when processing the 1-129f forms but are faster at processing the EAD (when you send in the AOS) then the local office I hope it comes through for you soon.

kelzm: wow not long to go now. How does one put all their stuff into 3 suitcases?. I mean, you can't fit a lot into them really. Did you find it hard to narrow everything down and what to take and what to leave?

It's definitely understandable and normal to be worried about your son.

As you say, he will be fine though.

kim: great news! only another two weeks!

[KimandRuss 0]

Thank you friends.

Russell booked his flight last night and we booked a few days of 'away' in Boston as well. We're just so excited to be so close. I will talk to the JP tonight to make some final arrangements regarding our ceremonies. Our first will be a very intimate oceanside ceremony on October 18th, where we will exchange our personal vows to each other. Short, sweet, romantic... just what we both want. In the spring we are planning another short ceremony with the same JP and a huge party with hundreds of our family and friends..including Russell's family from NZ who will fly up for the occassion. That should be great fun too. No fuss... just celebration!

Kel, how exciting for you! Have you tried those space bags? You know those ones that suck all the air out? You wouldn't believe the things you can fit in a tiny little space! The only problem is that then you must watch the weight of the suitcases. Your son is going to be just fine with your folks. Hopefully it wont be long before he joins you here as well. Have a safe trip HOME!

[kelzm 0]

Kim - space bags sound like a good idea, I might give those a go! What I'm finding is that I'm having to put aside lots of things like clothes so that I can take other things like photo's, little sentimental knick knacks and old cards and letters. I suppose ... you can always buy new clothes, right?

[yankiwi 0]

Yay for Kim and Russ!!! It's about time, eh!? Hopefully the interview will go smoothly so you'll be together soon!

Kelzm- Here's wishing you a safe flight to your honey! I know it's hard leaving family behind, I can't imagine leaving a son, but I hope these next few months go well for you both and that he'll be visiting you in no time!

Leave clothes, just be sure to take your favorites. Clothes shopping is one of the biggest things I miss about the US, it's nothing like NZ. Prices are better and there is a larger variety so you're more likely to get something that fits you well. When I moved here and needed to pick up a few things I did what most women do, saw someone close to my size wearing something I liked and asked where she got it from. The answer? The US! A lot of NZ women go on vacation to the US and stock up on clothes to bring back here!

We just spent a week seeing parts of the South Island. The west coast is breathtaking, I want to go back already! We rode the train over the Southern Alps, it was so exciting 'cause I've never been on a train! I have piles of pictures to sort through, why are vacations never anywhere near long enough?

[KimandRuss 0]

Thanks Tiara

I agree with you about the clothes although I have some favorites I picked up in NZ... of course, that could just be because they are from NZ! That merino wool keeps you real warm here in the Northeast!

Russell sister lives in Dunedin and he went to University in Christchurch. He then worked in Westport on the West Coast for some time afterwards. There are some pictures in this slideshow of the west coast. Just beautiful! I think we will just have to add that train trip to our next NZ adventure!

[cdneh 3,112]

Hope everyone is ticking along fine

I've had a look in the wardrobe...I have a certain amount of thinning down to do it seems. I'll have to be less packrat and more ruthless...I don't know where it all came from

[kiwiana 2]

Hi everyone!

Hope the weekend has been a good one.

(A few q's on my mind).....To those who have been to the interview at Auckland consulate (and to Russ who will go this week). Where is the best place to park ones car in the city? Also, Do you have to give/send them an original birth certificate of your fiance (petitioner) or just your own birth certificate?

Also, I have read some threads where some people have been asked to redo the medical once in USA for AOS, due to medical/vaccination records being lost. Has anyone here asked for copies of medical records when they went for their medical here? Just wondered if it was neccesary or not.

sorry for all the questions but just trying to fill my head with as much as possible about it all, seeing as i have so much time waiting for the process to proceed

[KimandRuss 0]

cdneh.. I know where those clothes came from! I seem to have the same sickness... and don't even get me started on shoes!

ana, people have mentioned parking everywhere but Russell found a 'carpark' (also known as a parking lot) on the same road as the Embassy...something about if you get there before 9am it's just $11 for the day... i'm quite sure he will post all about it in his review as he knows how much others have helped us..he'll want to do the same for those who come after us.

The Embassy didn't specifically ask for a certified copy of my b/c but I sent in anyway as they did say all originals and I have a few copies.

Regarding the vaccinations. The vaccinations are not actually required at the interveiw stage of the K1...they are actually needed for AOS. Most people do this in their own Country as it can be much cheaper and is often better to just get it done with. Anyway, at AOS you need to fill out a I693 (this is new form with new requirements as of 8/1/08) and have it signed by a civil surgeon. When you go for your medical in NZ you can have that doctor fill out a vaccination record and sign it for you. This is what you will submit with your AOS packet. Most people are perfectly fine with just this paper. If you do not have this from your medical then you can get a list of your vaccinations and have it signed by a civil surgeon here in the States.

Hope that answers your questions.

10 days, 13 hours!!!

[kelzm 0]

Heya

Here's some links for parking. I parked in the Customs St carpark, I was there for just over an hour and it cost about $5. It took about 2 minutes to walk from there to the Embassy.

http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/auckland/T...rking/guide.asp

There's also the Wilson parking yards which you can find info on here: http://www.wilsonparking.co.nz/go/regions/auckland-cbd

Good luck for your interviews everyone, I'm flying Home today I'll talk to you all later on, from there!

[gshennen 0]

Kiwiana - as far as parking is concerned, the Downtown Shopping Centre carpark is one and a 1/2 blocks away, easy to find, easy to get into and out of and probably the most convenient.

Also, we have started to send some boxes of staff (important documents, clothes, kids books etc) to the US. To give you an idea, we are using Allied Movers packing boxes, these are 45cm long, x 35cm high, x 30cm wide. They weigh between about 8kg and 12 kg when full, and is costing between $60 and $100 to post over using international economy (which takes 2 - 3 weeks).

Glad progress is going well for most of you.

We are just plodding along, as I am a project manager, I have created a complete project plan for our move (it seems so complicated with very young kids), so we have it all planned out - which makes it seem a lot less daunting.

Cheers

Grant

Whoops - Kel beat me to the parking thing.

Cheers

Grant

[cdneh 3,112]

cdneh.. I know where those clothes came from! I seem to have the same sickness... and don't even get me started on shoes!

10 days, 13 hours!!!

Oooo..that's the Shoe Fairy! (second cousin to the shoemakers elves)

10 days!!! OMG!!!

[yankiwi 0]

OMG you guys are NOT talking about shoes! Everyone I know keeps me away from the shoe section when we're shopping because once I catch that new shoe smell....well, we're gonna be there a while. I have an itch to go clothes shopping since the weather is warming up here, but every time I think of it I remember we're only here for another 4 months and if I save up now I can have one hell of a shopping trip when my feet hit US soil! Still, I'll probably pick up a few things now that winter clothes are being discounted since NZ has such good quality wool... After all, I still have no clue where we'll end up living when we move!

We were in town way early, so parked in the open air parking lot right across from the train station, you can see the building the Consulate is in from there. It cost $3 per 1/2 hour, with a maximum of $15 for 12 hours. We paid $15 since we opted to pay the whole day fee so we wouldn't have to worry about the meter going over, it was so worth it IMO!

Grant- Good to know about the shipping prices, that's what we plan to do before we leave here!